: Bill Morrison, Public Art Works Director of Marin County, holds up drawings from (left) Deidre Morris of Sausalito (17) and Aarron Akwaboah of Los Angles (age 17) which are this years entries for the condom package art contest which is designed to get young people to think about safe sex. The unique art, outreach and disease prevention program started two years ago in Marin County and has since spread throughout the state. Chronicle photo by Frederic Larson less

: Bill Morrison, Public Art Works Director of Marin County, holds up drawings from (left) Deidre Morris of Sausalito (17) and Aarron Akwaboah of Los Angles (age 17) which are this years entries for the condom ... more

Photo: Frederic Larson

Photo: Frederic Larson

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: Bill Morrison, Public Art Works Director of Marin County, holds up drawings from (left) Deidre Morris of Sausalito (17) and Aarron Akwaboah of Los Angles (age 17) which are this years entries for the condom package art contest which is designed to get young people to think about safe sex. The unique art, outreach and disease prevention program started two years ago in Marin County and has since spread throughout the state. Chronicle photo by Frederic Larson less

: Bill Morrison, Public Art Works Director of Marin County, holds up drawings from (left) Deidre Morris of Sausalito (17) and Aarron Akwaboah of Los Angles (age 17) which are this years entries for the condom ... more

1998-08-20 04:00:00 PDT SAN RAFAEL -- The brightly colored minipaintings lining Bill Morrison's office in San Rafael are symbols of what may be a new era in the art world.

The 2 3/4-inch square pieces are an eclectic mix of abstract swirls, Picasso-style scratchings and comic book art, all relating in some way to a single subject: Safe sex.

It's all part of a unique contest for artists under age 25 to design the coolest condom package and, at the same time, spread the word about the danger of sexually transmitted diseases.

Examples include the depiction of an unrolled condom being passed between the hands of God and Adam, as copied from Michelangelo's mural on the ceiling of the Sistine chapel. It includes the wording, "You Hold The Power."

Morrison, the director of Public Art Works, which sponsors and promotes public art programs in Marin County, is managing this year's statewide contest. It is being financed with the help of a $50,000 grant from the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The money is being administered by the California Family Health Council and the Los Angeles County Sexually Transmitted Disease Program.

"It's exactly the kind of collaborative, interdisciplinary project that the National Endowment for the Arts has been looking for," Morrison said. "It shows that art can serve a social service, that artists can be problem solvers."

Not everyone finds the contest so uplifting. Brad Dacus, president of the Pacific Justice Institute, a nonprofit organization that specializes in parental rights and religious freedom, said it is a misuse of taxpayer dollars and an insult to parents who oppose publicly funded sex education.

"Condom boxes have already been professionally decorated by private companies," Dacus said. "Any state program soliciting minor participation in condom distribution is a breach of the public trust in that it excludes the prior notice and consent of parents."

Morrison said about three dozen people, including a 12-year-old boy, have submitted artwork. He said he expects hundreds more before the September 1 contest deadline.

The top six artists will win $500 each and have their work displayed on 160,000 condom packages handed out by public health agencies. The opportunity has inspired more than a few rookie Renoirs.

Among the early submissions are several depictions of women in skimpy outfits and one happy- faced sun rising over a giant buttocks. Provocative yes, according to Morrison, but none of the entries has been pornographic, and the message appears to be getting across.

"It's important because people are dying, especially black males," said artist Aaron Akwaboah, 17, a senior at Dorsey High School in Los Angeles. "All the preaching is fine and dandy, but if it was effective, there wouldn't be so many people with AIDS right now. When they make education fun, it makes you pay more attention."

The condom package painting contest was conceived in Marin County two years ago by artist Dino Colombo, who was commissioned by Public Art Works.

The four 1996 winners had their art placed on 40,000 condom packages, creating a sensation around the state. Several donors were so inspired that they bankrolled a two-week trip by Morrison and the artists to a youth-issues session at the United Nations in Geneva.

The Family Health Council began preparing for a statewide contest shortly after the trip to Geneva, and Morrison is now negotiating an international condom art contest.

Morrison said the idea is to both inspire young people with a creative outlet and to instill in them the need to be sexually responsible.

Two winners each will be selected in September from southern, central and northern California, and their drawings will be printed on condom packages distributed at health centers and social service organizations.

Many health workers support the contest as a way to get young people informed about safe sex.

"Kids these days are having their first sexual experiences as young as 12 and 13, so anything that's educational is very necessary," said Yvonne Littleton, field supervisor for the Haight Ashbury HIV prevention outreach project. "Constantly saying 'danger, danger' doesn't stop anyone from doing anything. I'm an artist, so I'm in favor of appealing to people's creative side."

Margie Fites Seigle, CEO of the Family Health Council, said the state got involved as a way to get the word out about the dangers of chlamydia, a sexually transmitted disease that is hard to detect and can cause infertility and sterility.

She said the disease is running rampant among teenagers and young adults, with 60 percent of those infected under age 25. Studies have shown that up to 10 percent of sexually active adolescent girls are infected with chlamydia.

"This contest is a way of engaging young people in an important health program," Fites Seigle said. "We want teens and young adults to help get the word out about sexually transmitted diseases."